System and Method for Creating an Area of Landscaping

ABSTRACT

A system and method for implementing a landscaping project on a plot of land. The system creates a flexible landscaping template that is physically placed over the land that is to be landscaped. The flexible landscaping template has graphics printed on its surface that identify a variety of plants, indicate planting positions, and identify a variety of soil conditioning products the plants. The graphics on the flexible landscaping template can also indicate the placement of water management conduits and electrical conduits, the placement of hardscaping products and/or the placement of construction foundations. The flexible landscaping template is generated using input from a user and environmental criteria for the land to be landscaped. Once the flexible landscaping template is generated, the materials identified on the flexible landscaping template are gathered into a shipping module by a supplier company.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention

In general, the present invention relates to systems and methods thatinform a person of where to plant various species of plants on a tractof land. More particularly, the present invention relates to landscapingtemplates that are placed over a tract of land, wherein information forplanting is printed upon the template.

2. Prior Art Description

Landscaping is a branch of horticultural science. A properly landscapedtract of land can rarely be created by accident. Rather, the plantlandscaping must either be designed, or evolved through trial and errorthrough many growing seasons. The complexities of landscaping arise fromthe fact that different plants have different life cycles with differentlight requirements, different water requirements, and different soilrequirements. Different plants grow to different sizes, presentdifferent colors and bloom at different times. Different plants also aresusceptible to different diseases and attract different types of pestsand herbivores. It therefore takes a lot of thought and preparation tocreate a landscaping design that thrives and maintains pleasingaesthetics throughout a growing season.

Many landscaping projects are also designed to present a specializedaesthetic at a specific time. For example, a homeowner may want a gardenin full bloom of red, white and blue flowers for a Fourth of July party.Otherwise, a business may want landscaping that reproduces the logo ofthe company in front of its headquarters. Such landscaping is difficultto create and difficult to maintain. As a consequence, most landscapingis designed, installed and maintained by professional landscapers. Thisresults in a significant expense to the homeowner and/or business owner.

In the prior art, systems have been developed to assist a person, who isnot a trained landscaper, to properly landscape a particular tract ofland. Many prior art systems use templates of various types. One type oftemplate is a simple grid template. Such prior art grid templates areexemplified by U.S. Pat. No. 8,745,918 to Dyson-Coope, and U.S. Pat. No.5,282,317 to Carter. Grid templates merely help a homeowner properlyspace plants. Grid templates provide no information regarding whatplants to use, how to arrange those plants, how to water those plants,or how to prepare the soil for those plants. The same problems occurwith landscaping weed control sheeting that shows spaced points whereplants can be planted through the sheeting. Such weed-control sheetingis exemplified by U.S. Pat. No. 3,704,544 to Spanel. Such sheeting showsa person how to space plants but does nothing to help in the selectionor maintenance of the plants.

In the prior art, there are also templates that are laid on the groundto show where some specific types of plants should be planted. Suchprior art is exemplified by U.S. Pat. No. 6,763,601 to Turley. Suchprior art is limited in its applications, because it only providesinformation about spacing a select few plants. Such prior art templatescannot be used on oddly shaped plants. Furthermore, such templatesprovide no information regarding the water requirements or soilrequirements of the plants. This makes such systems inadequate forcomplex landscaping projects that use a wide variety of plants.

A need therefore exists for an improved landscaping template system thatenables more complex and ornate landscaped areas to be created by anon-professional. This need is met by the present invention as describedand claimed below.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is a system and method for implementing alandscaping project on a plot of land. The system creates a flexiblelandscaping template that is physically placed over the land that is tobe landscaped. The flexible landscaping template has graphics printed onits surface. The graphics identify a variety of plants, indicateplanting positions for the plants, and identify a variety of soilconditioning products for use at the planting positions. The graphics onthe flexible landscaping template can also indicate the placement ofwater management conduits and electrical conduits, the placement ofelectrical conduits, the placement of hardscaping products and/or theplacement of construction foundations.

The system generates the flexible landscaping template using input froma user and environmental criteria for the land to be landscaped. Oncethe flexible landscaping template is generated, the materials identifiedon the flexible landscaping template are gathered into a shipping moduleby a supplier company. The shipping module is shipped to the customer oris made available for pick-up. Once a customer has the shipping module,the customer lays out the flexible landscaping template and completesthe landscaping project using the materials and instructions provided.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a better understanding of the present invention, reference is madeto the following description of exemplary embodiments thereof,considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is schematic showing an exemplary embodiment of the presentinvention system;

FIG. 2 shows a first landscaping project type;

FIG. 3 shows a second landscaping project type;

FIG. 4 shows a third landscaping project type;

FIG. 5 shows a block diagram that illustrates a method of operation; and

FIG. 6 shows an exemplary embodiment of a flexible landscaping template.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present invention system can be configured in many ways and can beadapted for use in many applications. For example, the system can beused by professional landscapers. However, the present invention systemis especially well suited for use by the non-professional who would liketo achieve professional landscaping results in an economical fashion.Accordingly, an exemplary system is selected for the purposes ofdescription and illustration and shows the present invention beingutilized by an average untrained customer. The illustrated embodiment,however, is merely exemplary and should not be considered a limitationwhen interpreting the scope of the claims.

Referring to FIG. 1, an overview of the present invention system 10 isshown. A supplier company 12 has a website 14 that is hosted by a server16. The website 14 provides public access to a landscape projectselection database 18, as will later be explained. The website 14 isaccessible to the public through a data network 20, such as a cellularnetwork or the Worldwide Web. The supplier company 12 sells productsused in landscaping. Such products include, but are not limited to,plant products 22, soil conditioning products 24, soil protectionproducts 26, hardscaping products 28, construction products 30,electrical management products 31, and water management products 32. Thesupplier company 12 also provides a landscaping template 34 andinstructions 36 to a customer 38, that depend upon how that customer 38interacts with the website 14 and the landscape project selectiondatabase 18.

The plant products 22 include seeds, plants, plant supports, plant cagesand the like. The soil conditioning products 24 include fertilizers, topsoil, peat moss, vermiculite, sand, and other such products that areused to alter the pH, drainage characteristics and/or quality of soil.The soil protection products 26 include different types of mulch, straw,weed suppression sheeting and other ground cover products. Thehardscaping products 28 include gravel, paving stones, trim stones, wallstones, and the like. The construction products 30 include lumber,cement, building hardware and anything else needed to create astructure. Electrical management products 31 include wire, conduit,switches and lighting fixtures. Lastly, the water management products 32include various irrigation hoses, nozzles, valves, hose dividers anddrainage conduits. As will be further explained, the supplier company 12combines the plant products 22, soil conditioning products 24, soilproduction products 26, hardscaping products 28, construction products30, electrical management products 31 and water management products 32to meet the order requirements for a landscaping project. The variousproducts are combined into a shipping module 40 that is packaged andshipped to the customer 38. Alternatively, the shipping module can bepicked up by the customer 38.

The customer 38 has a plot of land 42 that is to be landscaped. Thecustomer 38 must know some basic information about the plot of land 42,such as the location of the plot of land 42 and the desired size andlocation of the landscaping project on the plot of land 42. The customer38 accesses the website 14 of the supplier company 12 through the datanetwork 20. The data network 20 is accessed using a computing device 44,such as a laptop computer or smart phone. Once interacting with thewebsite 14, the customer 38 has access to the landscape projectselection database 18. The landscape project selection database 18assists the customer 38 in defining the type of landscaping projectbeing created.

Many landscaping projects can be offered at the website 14. Referring toFIG. 2, FIG. 3 and FIG. 4, some exemplary landscaping projects areshown. In FIG. 2, an example of a simple wall bed project 46 is shown.This project 46 is a basic landscaping project that is used to landscapealong a wall or a fence. The wall bed project 46 is a generallyrectangular landscaped bed having a certain length and a width. In FIG.3, a more complex walkway project 48 is shown. The walkway project 48includes plants 50, a walkway 52, and a built structure 54. Thelandscaping project has an area determined by a project length and aproject width. Referring to FIG. 4, a highly complex logo project 56 isshown, wherein the landscaping project reproduces a logo in both shapeand color. This logo landscaping project 56 requires plants 58 of veryspecific colors and size that are planted in a very specific order. Thelogo landscaping project 56 also has an area determined by a length andwidth.

Referring to FIG. 5 in conjunction with FIG. 1, it will be understoodthat the customer 38 accesses the website 14 of the supplier company 12.See Block 60. Using the landscape project selection database 18, thecustomer 38 selects a general landscaping project from a variety ofoffered projects. See Block 62. Some examples of the general landscapingproject are shown in the wall bed project 46 of FIG. 2, the walkwayproject 48 of FIG. 3, and the logo project of FIG. 4. Once thelandscaping project type is selected, the general landscaping project iscustomized to the needs of the customer 38. The first customizableparameter is size. The customer 38 defines the size of the landscapingproject, by selecting the length, width and other dimensional variablesof the landscaping project. See Block 64. The customer 38 is thenqueried to define the location and exposure of the plot of land 42 uponwhich the landscaping project is to be located. See Block 66. Thephysical location of the plot of land 42 is queried. The location of theplot of land 42 is used to determine the environmental growth zone ofthe plot of land 42 and the typical soil type in that location. Byknowing the growth zone and soil parameters, the types of plants thatcan and cannot thrive in that growth zone become known. The customer 38is also queried about the orientation of the plot of land 42 using thecardinal directions. In this manner, the southern and eastern exposuresof the plot of land 42 can be determined. The customer 38 is alsoqueried with regard to exposure to sunlight. That is, when does the plotof land 42 experience full sunlight and for how long. This informationis also needed to determine what plants can and cannot thrive on theplot of land 42.

Knowing the general landscaping project, the growth zone, the soil typeand the sunlight exposure, the system can determine what plants qualifyfor use in the landscaping project. See Block 68. In addition to thephysical characteristics of the plot of land 42, the customer 38 can bequeried as to landscaping aesthetics. The customer 38 can be queried ifhe/she prefers a particular flower color scheme, season of bloom,maintenance requirements and other such preferences. Plants that requireno maintenance, some maintenance or high maintenance. Plants that reachcertain heights and the like. See Block 70. The selection of plantsavailable for use are further filtered using the aesthetic preferencesindicated by the customer 38. See Block 72. The filtered selection ofthe plants is then used to populate a variety of possible virtual oranimated landscapes. See Block 74. After being shown the simulatedpossibilities, the customer 38 selects a final landscape design. SeeBlock 76.

After the customer queries are complete, the system 10 has inputs forthe type of landscaping project, the size of the landscaping project,the location of the landscaping project, the environment of thelandscaping project and the customer's aesthetic requirements of thecustomer. Using this information, the supplier company 12 generates alandscaping template 34, instruction 36 for the landscaping template 34,and a packing list for the shipping module 40 that complements thelandscaping template 34. See Block 78 and Block 80. The supplier company12 then packages the shipping module 40. See Block 82.

Referring to FIG. 6 in conjunction with FIG. 1, an exemplary landscapingtemplate 34 is shown. The landscaping template 34 has a flexiblesubstrate 90 upon which various graphics are printed. The flexiblesubstrate 90 preferably blocks the growth of weeds but is waterpermeable. The flexible substrate 90 can be sheet of plastic, but canalso be made to be biodegradable.

The graphics printed on the landscaping template 34 partially serve asdirections for the landscaping project. If the flexible substrate 90 isblack, the graphics can be printed in white. If the landscaping template34 is clear or white, the graphics can be printed in black and othercolors. The graphics include planting circles 92. A plant identifier 94is printed in the planting circle 92. The plant identifier 94 can be anumber, a letter, the printed name of the plant, or the like. Theplanting circles 92 have different diameters. The diameters of theplanting circles 92 correspond to the area needed to accommodate theplant identified by the printed plant identifier 94.

The printed planting circles 92 are surrounded by printed soil circles96. Each soil circle 96 has a soil identifier 98 associated therewith.The soil identifiers 98 indicate what soil conditioning products 24 areneeded to be added to the existing soil to allow the plant of theplanting identifier 94 to thrive. It will be understood that differentplants have different soil requirements and the printed soil circles 96may differ as the printed planting circles 92 and plant identifiers 94differ.

Other information is printed on the landscaping template 34. Thelandscaping template 34 has a first type of placement graphics 100, 101that indicates where water management products 32 and the electricalmanagement products 31 are to be placed. The placement graphics 100, 101show the placement and path of irrigation hoses, drain conduits, wiringconduits and the like. The watering needs of the plant are determined byconsidering the plant type, the plant size, the temperature zone and theexposure to sunlight. As such, it will be understood that in alandscaping design, a cactus may require a drain to channel away water,while a deciduous tree may require gallons of water each day.

The landscaping template 34 also has a second type of placement graphics102 that indicates where hardscaping products 28, such as paving stonesand trim stones are to be placed. These hardscaping products 28 areapplied directly onto the surface of the landscaping template 34 and canbe applied over the water management products 32. The outlines of stoneproducts can be printed on the landscaping template 34. In this manner,very precise applications of hardscaping products 28 can be included inthe landscaping design.

The landscaping template 34 will also include construction graphics 104that show the base positions of construction products 30, should thelandscaping design include any type of construction other than thepositioning of stones. Depending upon the requirements of theconstruction products 30, foundation holes may need to be dug into theplot of land 42 or preformed foundation plates positioned on the plot ofland 42 to support the eventual construction.

Lastly, the landscaping template 34 has area graphics 106 that indicatewhere various soil protection products 26 are to be applied in theoverall landscaping design. The area graphics 106 may indicate that soilprotection products 26 are to be spread between the planting circles 92and various hardscaping products 28.

It will be understood that once the parameters of a landscaping designare detailed by the customer 38, the landscaping template 34 is made. Atthe same time, a shipping module 40 is prepared that contains all theplant products 22, soil conditioning products 24, soil protectionproducts 26, hardscaping products 28, construction products 30,electrical management products 31, and water management products 32,required by the landscaping template. The landscaping template 34, theinstructions 36 and the shipping module 40 are then sent to the customer38 for implementation.

When the landscaping project is ready to begin, the customer 38 is inpossession of the landscaping template 34, the instructions 36 and thecontents of the shipping module 40. Pursuant to the instructions 36, thecustomer 38 prepares the plot of land 42. This typically includescleaning away existing vegetation and rocks. Once the plot of land 42 isprepared, the customer 38 initially lays the landscaping template 34over the prepared plot of land 42. If foundation elements forconstruction must be dug into the ground and or if electrical managementproducts 31 and water management products 32 have to be dug into theground, the placement of such elements is marked on the plot of land 42.The landscaping template 34 is then removed and the underground elementsinstalled. Once the underground elements are installed, the landscapingtemplate 34 is again placed atop the plot of land 42. The landscapingtemplate 34 is cut by the customer in any place indicated for a plantingand/or soil preparation. For soil preparation, some indigenous earth isremoved from within the soil circles 96. The soil is replaced and/ormixed with the soil conditioning products 24 provided in the shippingmodule 40. Once the soil is conditioned, the plant products 22 are setinto the conditioned soil. The soil conditioning products 24 and theplant products 22 are coded to match the soil identifiers 98 and theplant identifiers 94 on the landscaping template 34. In this manner, theproper plants are positioned in the proper soil at the proper locations.Other hardscaping products 28, such as trim stone and paving stones canalso be applied over the landscaping template 34 at this time.

After the plant products 22 are planted and the hardscaping products 28installed, the soil protection products 26, such as mulch, are appliedto finish covering the landscaping template 34. As plants begin to grow,the presence of the landscaping template 34 suppresses the growth ofweeds and other plant life that may exist under the landscaping template34. The landscaping template 34 will eventually decompose. However, thiswill take at least thirty days of outside exposure. This period of timeshould be sufficient to kill any undesirable plant life underlying thelandscaping template 34.

Since the shipping module 40 contains the exact amount of materialsneeded to create a selected design, there is little to no waste ofmaterial in the building of the selected landscaping design. Thisenables the overall landscaping design to be economically packaged andeconomically priced.

It will be understood that the embodiments of the present invention thatare illustrated and described are merely exemplary and that a personskilled in the art can make many variations to those embodiments. Allsuch embodiments are intended to be included within the scope of thepresent invention as defined by the appended claims.

1.-14. (canceled)
 15. A method of creating a landscaping module for usein implementing a landscaping project on a plot of land, said modulecontaining: determining an environmental zone and sunlight exposure forsaid plot of land; selecting plants from a selection of plants that canthrive in said environmental zone and with said sunlight exposure,therein creating selected plants; selecting a landscaping design thatutilizes said selected plants, hardscaping products and soil protectionproducts; printing said landscaping design on a flexible substrate,therein forming a landscaping template, wherein said landscapingtemplate indicates placement of said selected plants, said hardscapingproducts and said soil protection products; packing and shipping saidlandscaping template with said selected plants, said hardscapingproducts and said soil protection products to said plot of land for use.16. The method according to claim 15, further including determining soilconditioning products in view of said selected plants, wherein said soilconditioning products create improved soil conditions for said selectedplants to grow, wherein said soil conditioning products are packed andshipped with said landscaping template, said selected plants, saidhardscaping products, and said soil protection products.
 17. The methodaccording to claim 15, further including providing water managementproducts and printing placement positions for said water managementproducts on said landscaping template.
 18. The method according to claim17, further including packing and shipping said water managementproducts with said landscaping template, said selected plants, saidhardscaping products, and said soil protection products.
 19. The methodaccording to claim 15, further including providing electrical managementproducts and printing placement positions for said water managementproducts on said landscaping template.